Trying to Save Us
by xxDream-Up-Your-Painxx
Summary: (Sequel to Trying to Get over Us). Veronica was trying to move on with her life, but escaping the past was never an easy thing for her to do. After a message from an old friend, she had to deal with her past staring at her right in her face. Will things finally work out?
1. Chapter One

**Disclaimer:** I don't own any WWE Superstars. If I did… hehe…

**A/N:** Hey everyone!

First, I'd like to thank everyone for reading the first story. If you haven't read _Trying to Get over Us_, it is strongly suggested that you do so, since certain parts may not make much sense if you don't read it.

That being said, I feel like the last story was lacking something, but I won't reveal what it is yet. I'm working hard to add whatever the last story was lacking, and as the story progresses, you'll probably figure it out.

Also, Nick in this story is Dolph Ziggler, just in case anyone gets confused.

Anyway, on to the sequel!

* * *

**Trying to Save Us**

**Chapter One**

* * *

Veronica stared at her answering machine in disbelief. That really just happened, she thought. Seated on her couch in her apartment, she tried to take in all that she had heard and shook her head. She needed to hear it again. Reaching over to the side table, she pressed the button on the machine to replay the message.

"Saved message," the automated female voice spoke through the speaker. "Hey, it's Nick," a male voice echoed. "I don't know if you remember me, but if you do, I'd like to catch up, since I heard you live in Chicago and I'm here for a week. Just call me back if you'd like that." He left his phone number for her to call before the message got cut off.

Even though he was five years older than her, they were best friends, since they were neighbors back when they both lived in Cleveland. However, they lost touch after he finished high school and left for college. She was sure that he had gone back to Cleveland after he was done with college, but she wouldn't know; she lived in Cincinnati by the time he was most likely finished.

Veronica sighed and picked up her phone to call him. She held her breath as the line started ringing. She had no idea what to say, since it had been fifteen years since they last spoke to each other. There was a huge possibility that he had changed drastically. "Hello?" Nick's familiar voice sounded through the phone.

"Hey…" she started, not really knowing what to say. "This is Nick, right?"

"Who is this?" he asked.

"Veronica," she answered softly. "You know, Veronica Hudson from Cleveland."

She heard a bit of ruffling before he answered again. "V! You got my message!" he said excitedly. From his reaction, Veronica could tell that he hadn't changed since the last time they spoke. Well, at least not too much.

"Yeah," she said shyly. "So, when do you want to catch up?" she asked.

He cleared his throat and hummed for a few seconds. "How about in an hour? Does that sound good to you?"

Veronica smiled, since she was free for the rest of the day. "Sure, that sounds great," she said before giving him her address to pick her up.

* * *

Veronica stood in front of her closet in just her underwear, trying to figure out exactly what to wear. He didn't tell her where they were going, but from what she knew about him, it wasn't going to be anywhere fancy. In fact, it would most likely be Starbucks or something. Still, she needed to look the best she possibly could.

After she realized she only had fifteen minutes left to get dressed, she grabbed a baby blue tank-top that accentuated her frame nicely; a pair of tight-fitting, dark, acid-washed shorts, and a pair of low cut, baby-blue Chuck Taylors.

It didn't take too long to put her clothes on; it only took about five minutes. However, there was still the matter of putting on her makeup, which usually took twenty minutes. It probably had something to do with the fact that she was a major perfectionist when it came to her makeup, so she had to try to look past the minor kinks and not worry about how she looked until after she got back home.

After she had finished applying her makeup, she heard four knocks on the door, so she hopped up from her seat in front of the mirror and walked over to the front door. She reached for the doorknob, but paused as she felt her heart pounding hard against her chest. She sucked in a large amount of air and exhaled loudly before opening the door. As soon as she did, she smiled brightly at the six foot man, taking in how different he looked from the last time she saw him.

His brown hair was now bleached and slicked back untidily. He was also taller and more muscular, which made him a bit more attractive than the last time they ever saw each other. His fashion sense hadn't changed one bit; he was still into animal prints and jeans. He was wearing a pink zebra print t-shirt, and a pair of ripped jeans. "Wow…" she said accidentally said out loud. She caught her slip-up and shook her head. Before speaking again, she cleared her throat. "Hey, Nick!" She stepped out into the hallway and shut the door behind her.

"V! Hug me!" he exclaimed with his arms open, a broad smile on his face. She wrapped her arms around his mid-back, since she was a lot shorter than him. He smelled so good, and she wanted to stay there just to smell him all day. Unfortunately for her, he pulled away and stepped back, presumably to take in her appearance. "You look amazing!"

She blushed at his compliment. "Thanks, you look amazing too," she said shyly, but she didn't know why; it didn't seem like he changed too much, so she had no reason to be shy or nervous around him.

They stood there, just staring at each other for a moment before he decided to speak up. "So… are you ready to get some coffee at Starbucks?" he asked.

"Yeah, let's go."

He started walking off, but turned back for a second to look at her. "By the way, a couple of guys from my job will be joining us. Only three of them, though. But I'm sure you'll love them. You're okay with that, right?"

"I'm cool with it. I'm sure we'll all have a great time."


	2. Chapter Two

A/N: Hey everyone! Huge thanks go to **_moxleysvixen_**, **_OtherLuces_**, **_sincitysunset_**, **_21belle_**, **_Ruth C_**, **_HannahMarieOsborne_**, **_aurabadoraaa_**, _**x-Fear-Is-Only-In-Our-Minds-x**_, **_x-xKeep-On-Craving-x-x_**, **_xXStone-Cold-LipsXx_**, **_Heelover94_**, **_DeeMarie426_**, **_j. hotzman_**, **_JohnCenaFan21_**, **_lexigurl0989_**, **_lovethemafi__a_**, and _**cadavresanglant**_. I love you all!

I sat down a few days ago and planned out this entire story. I now know exactly how itt want to give away anything. At least not yet.

Anyway, here comes the second one. I hope you all enjoy!

* * *

**Trying to Save Us**

**Chapter Two**

* * *

The drive to Starbucks was a pretty enjoyable one, since they used the time alone to catch up. She found out that Nick was a professional wrestler, just like he planned, and she was extremely happy for him. It was too bad that she wasn't there to support him every step of the way like she promised him.

Nick hopped out of the car and went to the other side to open the door for her. "Since when did you become such a gentleman?" she asked jokingly. "Last I checked, you were a complete asshole."

He chuckled and helped her out of the car. "What are you talking about? I was always a gentleman," he said, shutting the door for her once she was completely out of the car. As they approached the entrance, she stopped in her tracks when she saw him. _Him_. "V, what's the matter?"

She shook her head, deciding that it couldn't possibly him. Well, it could… but in order to stay calm for the arrangement she had with Nick and his friends, she had to tell herself that it wasn't him. "Nothing's wrong," she assured him. "I just thought I saw somebody, but I was wrong. It's not them." Still, Nick was a professional wrestler, and so was he. There was a huge chance that it actually was him.

He shrugged and continued walking, grabbing her hand before he opened the door. "I think I see them right now," he said, walking swiftly towards the table, tugging her along with him.

He stopped in front of the three men, and she noticed one of them. The two of them shared a shocked expression as they stared at each other. "Nick, I…" she stopped talking, trying to find the correct words to explain the entire situation. Unfortunately, she couldn't, and she had to find a better time to do that. "Nevermind."

"Okay…" He cleared his throat before gesturing to the more muscular of the three with gorgeous black hair. "This is Joe, and he's dickhead number one." That earned a chuckle from "dickhead number one", and Veronica honestly found it attractive. His smile was almost perfect. "Anyway, this is Colby, dickhead number two, of course," he said, pointing to least muscular one, but he wasn't too skinny. He moved on to the next one; the same one she hoped not to see again in her entire life. "This one is Jon, and can't even be classified as a dickhead; he's more of an asshole."

Veronica noticed that Jon lowered his head a bit, and she took it as a sign that he didn't want to see her, either. "Hi," she said, barely above whisper.

Nick noticed her sudden timidness, so he spoke for her. "Dickheads and asshole, this is Veronica." They all smiled except for Jon, who just shook his head. "Be nice. That goes for you too, asshole." He pulled out a chair next to Jon and motioned for her to sit down in it. He noticed her hesitation, so he bent down to whisper in her ear. "Are you alright?" he inquired.

She looked up at him and nodded, sitting down in the seat he pulled out for her instantly. She could smell Jon's signature scent; Axe body spray mixed with cigarettes. It was simply intoxicated, and she quickly found herself scooting closer to him just so she could smell it a bit stronger. And by the look on his face, she could tell that it made him uncomfortable, so she scooted back over to Nick, who was sitting next to her. "Sorry," she said quietly. She wasn't sure if he heard her, but she didn't really care.

"What's your name again?" Nick asked. She was probably so caught up on Jon that she wasn't even listening to the conversation they were all having. "Isn't it Vanessa Star or something like that?"

"Yeah…" She looked outside for a moment, but her head snapped back when she realized something. She never told Nick that she was a stripper. "Hold on, how did you know about me being a—" She stopped speaking when he chuckled. "Who told you?"

"I've been in Chicago for over a week, and I've visited your strip club every night since I've been here. I saw you, so I picked up a phone book and looked for your home number to call you. It wasn't that hard." Veronica's mouth was slightly agape by the end of his story. She wasn't embarrassed or humiliated, but since he had gotten her number so easily, it wouldn't have been too hard to protect herself from the stalkers she had running around the place. "You okay?"

She nodded and slumped back into her chair. She noticed the look on Joe and Colby's face upon hearing that she was a stripper, and it brought on a small smile on her face. "Yeah, and I also teach people how to strip," she added.

Colby chuckled and shared a funny look with Joe. "So... Your last name is Hudson, right?" he inquired. They both looked at Jon, then at her with huge grins on their faces.

She nodded while looking at Jon. "Yeah, how'd you know?" She already had a feeling regarding how they knew her last name, but she wanted to make sure.

"That's not important right now," Joe said with a smile. "What's important right now is that I'm low on caffeine and we're sitting in the middle of Starbucks, just flapping our gums," he said, causing Jon to actually laugh.

"Did you just fucking say 'flapping our gums'?" he asked with a chuckle at the end.

Nick looked over to Veronica, who looked like she was a little uncomfortable. He didn't know why, but he'd eventually find out. So far, he knew it had something to do with Jon, and he was going to figure out exactly what it was sooner or later. Squeezing information from her wasn't hard for him, especially since he knew her better than anyone. "V, you wanna talk?" he asked as he leaned in towards her while the other three men argued over something. "We can go outside if you want to."

She shook her head and looked at him for a while. A small smile formed on her face when he smiled at her. "Why do you want to go outside to talk?" she questioned. He shrugged and looked at Jon for a second, then looked at her again.

"I don't know, maybe because you look so nervous next to Jon," he said, placing a hand on her thigh afterwards. "But you seem a little happy now, so I guess you're fine."

Veronica felt her face getting a little heated at his hand placement. His hand was a bit too far up, but she didn't mind for some reason. "Yeah, I'm alright," she said with a little giggle.

* * *

They had all been sitting at Starbucks for three hours, and they were getting a bit bored. Joe, Colby, Nick, and Veronica had been getting along pretty well, but Jon decided that after his first cup of coffee that he would just wait outside.

"So, I'm ready to leave now," Veronica announced, checking the time before she rose from her seat. Her comment made all three men groan. "I have to go get ready for work, sorry," she said, but Nick pulled her back down into her seat. "Nick, I have to go, I'm serious." Even though she said that she was serious, the smile on her face said otherwise.

"How about a preview of what you're planning on doing at work?" he said with puppy-dog eyes, but as cute as they admittedly were, she wasn't going to fall for them.

"If you really want to see, you'd come down to the club and watch me work like you have for the past week," she said, causing all of them to laugh. "Anyway, you have to take me back home, since you were the one who dragged me out of the house in the first place." She stood there, expecting Nick to grab his things and leave, but he instead shook his head.

"Wait by the car. I'll be out in a few minutes," he said before turning his attention back to Joe and Colby. "I need to talk to these two alone."

She nodded and turned on her heel, walking through the door. She saw Jon outside with a beer in hand. Where he got it from was a mystery, but it was one she didn't really care about, so she ignored him and walked over to Nick's car.

Suddenly, she felt something restricting her from walking any further than she did. She turned around and saw that Jon was holding her arm, and she tried to wriggle it away, but he was too strong. "Jon, please don't start this up again," she said in a serious tone.

He released her arm and stepped back a bit. He stood there, waiting for her to turn and leave, but she didn't. "You want to talk to me, don't you?" he asked, but only got a blank stare in return. "Fine. I guess I'll just go." He walked past her and went over to the rental to wait for the rest of the boys.

Veronica watched as he took a sip of his beer while he leaned up against the car. She found that slightly arousing, but she had to contain herself. She didn't want him or anyone else to know how she felt at that moment.

She felt a pair of arms snake around her waist and lift her off her feet. She looked up to see who had done it and it was, of course, Nick. "You're so light, I could hold you all day." He gave her a quick peck on the cheek before putting her down gently on the floor.

Veronica looked over to Jon, only to see that he had already gone into the car, and he was now driving off. She was upset that he was gone, but she was still glad that she was alone with Nick. "And I would gladly let you hold me all day."


	3. Chapter Three

A/N: Hey! Huge thanks go to _**DeeMarie426**_, **_LexiAmbroseCabana_**, _**Punk Love Kelly**_, _**rockangel01**_, _**x-Fear-Is-Only-In-Our-Minds-x**_, _**x-xKeep-On-Craving-x-x**_, _**xXStone-Cold-LipsXx**_, and _**OtherLuces**_.

Since I'm finally becoming a bit more social in the real world, I can't write 24/7 like I used to. So, I'd like to apologize for the late updates in advance.

Anyway, don't forget to leave reviews for this one!

* * *

**Trying to Save Us**

**Chapter Three**

* * *

Jon sat outside of the hotel at the poolside. It was midnight, and he was still awake. He didn't have anything to do the next day, so he wasn't going to try to force himself to sleep. He raised an already lit cigarette to his lips and took a drag of it, blowing out a cloud of smoke.

"Look, I know something's wrong, so spill," Colby said, startling Jon and causing him to drop his cigarette. He wasn't even supposed to be smoking, which is part of the reason he went outside. "Don't try to hide it; I already saw it," he said before sitting down next to him. "So, what's bothering you?"

Jon exhaled loudly, brushing the burning cigarette into the water. "You know exactly what's bothering me; you just want me to say it out loud," he said before getting up from the ground to go back inside.

"I don't think you want to go back inside, Jon," he said, causing him to stop in his tracks. "Nick is up there talking about the same person I think is bothering you," he informed him. Nick wasn't really talking about her; he was actually talking to her over the phone. But he said that in an attempt for him to spill everything.

"Fine," Jon breathed out. "Do you really want to know why I'm in such a shitty mood?" Jon started pacing and breathing heavily. "She left me, and she fucking shattered me, but then I tried to convince myself that I was over it by banging tons of skanks like her!" he yelled. Colby was surprised at his reaction, but he stepped back a bit and stayed quiet while he flailed his arms all over the place. "Now she's back and I don't even want to fucking look at her because that bleached haired asshole had his hand all over her and shit!"

When Colby was sure that Jon was done speaking, he cleared his throat and stepped closer to him. "Sounds like a case of jealousy to me," he said before walking past him to go back inside.

"I'm not jealous," he said quietly to himself before following behind Colby.

* * *

"I get off at one in the morning," Veronica told Nick over the phone. He asked her to come over, but she was still at work, and she wasn't even supposed to be on the phone, especially since the club was exceptionally full. "I'll call you back later," she said before hanging up her phone.

Just as she did so, her boss came in, a smile on his face when he caught sight of his little moneymaker. "Veronica!" he said with his arms wide open, hoping that she would give him a hug, which she did. "You know, I still get shocked when I see this many people come in the club. I remember when it was a complete wasteland before you stepped in," he gushed with his chin rested on her head.

"That's not true," she said before pulling away so he could see the smile on her face. "Anyway, I know that it's a little early, but I'd like to leave to see a friend. I don't have to, but I kind of…" she saw that he was about to laugh, so she stopped speaking. "Nevermind, I'll stay until my shift ends," she sighed and began to walk out, but her boss called out to her.

"You can go, but before you do, you need to work the pole at least once," he said, using his stern voice to add some sort of effect to his authority over her.

She smiled and leaped in the air. "Thank you so much Mr. Baxter!" She checked the stage to make sure that no one was on at the moment, and luckily for her, no one was. All it took was for her to step out there, since she was already in her usual "work" attire.

* * *

Nick sat in his hotel room, smiling at the text Veronica sent him.

_Pick me up in about ten minutes… or you can come early and watch me work. ;)_

He was tempted to do exactly that, but he didn't want to come off as even more of a pervert. Even though she knew practically everything about him, he was still worried about what she thought of him. Maybe it had something to do with him getting some feelings for her.

Jon plopped down on the floor, groaning as Colby laughed at him. "I need my mind to shut off for the rest of my life," he said, causing Nick to raise an eyebrow. "Can someone get me a beer and a nice set of tits?" he asked, earning laughter from all three men.

"I can get you a beer, but if I manage to get a chick with a nice set of tits, I'm not sharing them with anyone," Nick said before getting up from the bed. "Anyway, I'm going out to pick up Veronica. I won't kick you guys out this time, because the things I want to do can easily be done in a car," he said with a wink.

Jon rolled his eyes and finally got up from the floor, going over to the refrigerator to get a beer. "I'm going to sleep after this," he said to himself, but loud enough for all of them to hear.

"I knew it," Nick muttered, grabbing his keys to leave. The was an indicator that what Colby and Joe told him the previous day was true.

* * *

Veronica stepped outside of the club and saw Nick sitting in his car, and he was obviously distracted by his phone. She knew that he was going to call her, so she slid her phone out of her pocket and stared at it, waiting for it to ring. Within a few seconds, it began ringing, but she didn't answer it. Instead, she walked over to the car and opened the door, looking at him with a smile. "You called?"

He smiled back her as she grabbed a seat and buckled up. "Yeah, but only to tell you that I'm not carrying you home right away," he stated, driving off after she shut the door. "I have to discuss something with you, then we're going back to the hotel."

From the look on his face, she could tell that it wasn't going to be anything too big, which made her calm down a bit. "Okay… What do you want to discuss?" She asked, watching a small smile form on his face.

He looked at her for a quick second before locking her eyes back on the road. "I heard about you and Jon." He heard a sigh come from her, so he looked back over to her. "Is that why you were acting that way in Starbucks?"

She nodded, looking out of the window as he stopped at a red light. "Yeah, that's why. But he's your friend, so I guess I have to deal with it," Veronica said with a sigh at the end. After Nick began driving again, she looked over at him to see him shaking his head.

"If you don't want to talk to him, I'm not gonna force you to," he stated. "But tonight, I want you to talk to him a little. Like, I want the two of you to get along, but I'm not gonna force it. It's your choice whether you want to do it or not."

Veronica thought about it for a while, but she couldn't decide if she should. "I don't know, Nick. I'll give you an answer as soon as we get to the hotel." Something was off about Nick after those words left her lips, He pulled over and turned off the car, staring directly at her. She didn't know what was going on, but the look he was giving her was slightly arousing.


	4. Chapter Four

**A/N:** Hi! Big thanks go to **_Kdaniels270_**, **_ChelleLew_**, **_DeeMarie426_**, **_tinalovesambrose_**, **_x-xKeep-On-Craving-x-x_**, **_xXStone-Cold-LipsXx_**, and **_x-Fear-Is-Only-In-Our's-Minds-x._**

Yeah, I know this chapter is late, but like I said in the last chapter, the updates were going to slow, since my social life has gotten rather hectic.

I haven't written anything in a long time, so this chapter may come off a bit rusty. I'll regain my skills eventually, so don't worry. Though, in an attempt to get better, it would be greatly appreciated if you sent me a request to write a story for you on Tumblr (that's where all my one-shots are posted, though I haven't written much). My URL is the same as it is on here, xxdream-up-your-painxx. Although I'm sure no one would be interested, I'd like to say thank you in advance for sending me your requests.

* * *

**Trying to Save Us**

**Chapter Four**

* * *

Veronica felt Nick's breath on her lips as he scooted closer to her. She sat there, debating whether or not she should move her head an extra inch, or if she should wait for him to do it. They were supposed to be best friends, after all, but she had to admit that she had a little bit of feelings for him back then, and they were growing into bigger feelings at that moment.

After realizing that she wasn't going to make the move, Nick brought his hands up to her face to cup her cheeks and pulled her face in closer to kiss her. Her lips were so soft, and they tasted like cherry, thanks to the lip gloss she was wearing. He didn't intend on pulling away, and from the way she was pressing her body into his, he could tell that she didn't want to, either.

His tongue darted into her already slightly opened mouth, and one of his hands slid into her jeans. She moaned into his mouth, and the vibration caused him to moan right back. He slid his hand out of her pants for a quick second to unbutton them, and when he was finished, he slid his hand into her underwear instead. "Fuck, you're wet," he said against her lips. "Which is why I have to do this." He pulled his hand away and scooted back over, a broad smile on his face.

"Wait, what are you doing?" Veronica asked as Nick started the car back up. "You can't do that!" she exclaimed. Well, he could, but she just didn't want him to. He got her so ready, and he just stopped like that. That wasn't fair…

"But I think I just did, Veronica," he said, driving away. He saw her glaring at him from the corner of his eye, like she was waiting for an explanation. He wasn't going to give her one, however. She didn't need to know. At least not yet.

"You're so fucking evil," she said, causing him to chuckle.

"I know that."

* * *

Jon opened his eyes and groaned when someone pulled the covers off of his body. "Dude, what the fuck is your problem?" he grabbed the sheets and pulled them back up to his neck. He tried to go back to sleep, but he couldn't. The room was filled with Veronica's scent, and it was getting to him. "Fuck it, I'll just get a beer," he breathed out.

"Jon, get over here," Nick said as he grabbed a beer from the refrigerator. "Bring me one, too." He looked over to Veronica, who looked like she was in some sort of trance. Her eyes were locked on Jon, and he knew that it was probably because the only thing he was wearing were a pair of boxers. "V, snap out of it," he whispered into her ear.

She shook her head and looked at Nick. "I don't want to do this again," she said before rising from the bed, but Nick pulled her back down. "Do I have to?"

He nodded and took the beer that Jon handed him when he got close enough. "Have a seat next to Veronica," he said with a wink, causing him to roll his eyes. "We all need to have a serious conversation."

Jon sat next to her and groaned. "You know that it's two in the morning, right?" He asked, taking a sip of his beer. "It doesn't matter anyway; knowing you, you'd still continue with it, so just get on with it."

He cleared his throat before speaking again. "Yeah, so you guys need to start talking again, because both of you will be around each other a lot more often. I don't like the awkwardness. It doesn't make me uncomfortable, but it makes Colby and Joe uncomfortable." He took a sip of beer and placed his arm around Veronica. "Also, I heard something about you, but I'm not gonna—"

"Hey, it's two in the morning and I'm trying to get some sleep. Either shut the fuck up or take your stupid conversation outside the goddamn room," Joe said, throwing a pillow at Nick at the end. "Now I gotta get up to get my damn pillow back," he breathed out.

Nick chuckled and stood up. "Well, you heard the man. Let's go." The two of them followed closely behind as he went out into the hallway. He stared straight at them, seeing how the both of them awkwardly stood next to each other. "Alright, as I was saying, I need you two to work things out for the sake of the rest of us. And since I know you both will agree, but not really follow through with it, I'll put together a little test tomorrow. You won't know when, and you don't know what the test will be. That's all I'm saying." He leaned against the wall with arms folded across his chest, waiting for someone to respond.

Jon looked down at his beer, thinking about the worst Nick could possibly do. Knowing him, it wouldn't be too bad; maybe only keep them in a room locked up together, and he still probably wouldn't talk to her. It would take a lot more than that. "Yeah, alright, so can I go back to sleep now?" he asked, shifting his weight to his left foot.

Nick nodded, and Jon went back in without hesitation, leaving just him and Veronica out there. He didn't mind it, though. He actually just remembered something he wanted to tell her. "We'll continue what happened in the car later, alright V?" He sent a wink her way before walking back inside, leaving with a grin on her face.

He had a long day to prepare for.


End file.
